Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
September 16, 2026
John 14:27, Romans 5:1-2

Jesus told his disciples; “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid”. The Apostle Paul told the believers in Rome; “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand”.

What do you suppose Jesus meant when he said; “I do not give to you [peace] as the world gives”? One way I understand his peace is that it is constant, consistent and eternal. The converse of that would be the waffling, inconsistent and temporary quick fixes that the world offers when pain and turmoil confront us. Looking at Paul’s teaching about the peace we have with God; I see an aspect of it I did not see before today. His phrase; “…we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand”, this idea of standing in grace is a beautiful word picture of the constant, consistent and eternal soul peace God offers to each of us. The perfect peace of God is only obtained by faith in this Jesus who gave himself up for us, who loved the whole world so much that he took on all our sin, pain and turmoil.

I want to encourage you today to remember how much God loves you and that His plan is still in effect; to rescue the perishing, to bring peace that surpasses all human understanding, and secure for you a life of purpose and eternal life when this one is finished. When in doubt, check it out in the Gospels.

Part of a favorite hymn of mine says; “O to grace how great a debtor, daily I’m constrained to be!” All my debt/sin constrains (compels me to stay close) to the only one who can clear me. The next line of this hymn stanza says; “Let thy goodness like a fetter, bind my wondering heart to thee…” Perhaps you are familiar with “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”, the hymn I am quoting. If so, sing it out loud and include a hearty Amen!

Pray on!

Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
September 9, 2026
Psalm 103:22

“Praise the Lord, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the Lord, O my soul”. David doesn’t ask God for anything in this hymn of praise. David is simply thankful for the blessings of newness of life with God. In verses 1 - 5 he tells himself; “Bless the Lord, O my soul and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s”.

Today, I am reading this psalm as a reminder to stop and praise the Lord. Do you ever talk to yourself? Have you ever found yourself looking at something you are considering to purchase and don’t even realize you are talking when another shopper comes by and says something like; “I get that, can you believe how much things cost nowadays?”. I remember one time while shopping at an Aldi store, I was actually singing; “Sunny day, everything’s A Ok, friendly neighbors there, that’s where we meet. Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street, how to get to Sesame Street” (smile). My kids weren’t even little then, I just had that song in my head and as a stress reliever, I was just singing away and sure enough, a fellow shopper said, “I loved that show too”. I didn’t even realize I was singing out loud. Listen how David is talking to himself when he says; “Bless the Lord, O my soul…” It is something to think about; how we talk to ourselves. Do we speak positively or negatively, do we say words of encouragement, words of gratitude, are we in the mindset of praising God? Maybe you or someone in your sphere of influence is struggling with negative self-talk. Here’s a thought for today, sing praises to the God who created you in His image and loves you with an everlasting love. Life may still go on as a struggle, but you can remind yourself you are not alone. Call a friend and share what is happening, ask for prayer and perhaps a practical form of help.

A verse from James Montgomery; “Stand up and bless the Lord, the Lord your God adore; stand up and bless his glorious name, hence forth forever more”.

AMEN and Pray on!

Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
September 3, 2026
John 3:16-17, John 13:34-35

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but the world through him might be saved” (KJV).

A few of my fellow church members and I have been trying to read and journal assigned passages of Scripture that are themed for each month. This month the theme is; “The Fruit of the Spirit”. I love looking at and meditating on the fruit of the Spirit as I am reminded that faith in Christ is a growing thing, a fruit bearing experience.

The focus of today’s main scripture; John 3:16-17 is the love of God; a love that will not let me go (as a beautiful hymn celebrates). This love is beyond feelings, beyond affinities, beyond anything human. The Greek word Agape; a spiritual love that knows no bounds, describes for us a way of loving and living that fulfills God’s command to Love Him with all that we are and to love our neighbor as ourselves. John writes later in his Gospel that Jesus declares; “A new command I give you; Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another”.

When you review the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), You will see that love is the first fruit. I believe Paul was putting these in just such an order that we might always put Jesus first and his commandment to love first. Here’s where it get’s tough; how to love like Jesus when my flesh, my natural way is not so much the Jesus way. So, believers and followers of Christ are to daily take up their cross of life struggle and commit His way to our own. Reading, meditating, memorizing and reciting the life-giving words of Christ is the way to true loving and true living.

I found a confession of faith written by Leo Tolstoy: “I believe in God, who is for me spirit, love, the principle of all things. I believe that God is in me, as I am in Him. I believe that the true welfare of man consists in fulfilling the will of God. I believe that from the fulfillment of the will of God there can follow nothing but that which is good for me and for all men. I believe that the will of God is that every man should love his fellow men, and should act toward others as he desires that they should act toward him. I believe that the reason of life is for each of us simply to grow in love. I believe that this growth in love will contribute more than any other force to establish the Kingdom of God on earth”.

A Closing hymn: “O love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee; I give Thee back the life I owe, That in Thine ocean depths its flow may richer, fuller be” (George Matheson 1882).

AMEN and Pray on!

Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
August 22, 2026
Matthew 11:28-29

Have you ever had a morning that as soon as your feet hit the ground you found yourself going from one thing to another with thoughts that are scattered while all you want to do is be productive and faithful. Well, welcome to my morning. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a form of anxiety, but a joyful experience of so many wonderful opportunities that I am too excited to focus on one thing long enough to complete it. Thankfully, I have you to remind me to sit quietly with the Lord and focus on a midweek meditation, and so, here we go (smile).

“Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light”.

The idea of the yoke is a reference to the teachings of Jesus. He compares them to the teachings of the Pharisees who were, at that time, placing heavy burdens of legalism on the faithful. Jesus simply asks the faithful to love God with all they have and love their neighbor as themselves (Matthew 22:37-40).

For those of you with a farming background, you may be familiar with a yoke that keeps two cows or oxen moving in the same direction safely. That is what Jesus does for us; he commands us to love God with all we are and all we have and love others the way we want to be loved and cared for. This moves believers along in the Kingdom way safely and carefully so as to move together in a forward direction, looking forward to His kingdom come.

Are you yoked with Christ? If not, consider how your life is moving and if you could use some rest from your burdens.

Sing – “Oh soul, are you weary and troubled, no light in the darkness you see. There’s hope for a look at the Savior, a life more abundant and free. Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of life will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace”.

AMEN and Pray on!

Weekly Meditation with Pastor Edith
August 20, 2026
1 Peter 5:5-7

“All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

Recently I have become aware that anxiety sneaks up on me. I can be going along, singing a song and suddenly something happens that alarms me and “poof”, I am all worried and anxious. I am also reminded in God’s Word to stay very close to Him and when these anxious or worrisome thoughts try to steal my joy, take a deep breath and “pray; “Thank you Lord for being in it all with me” and then pray again the Lord’s prayer. Do you have a rhythm of recovery when you feel anxiety creeping up on you? Today’s scripture passage tells us to begin with putting on humility. There’s an idea, take time all throughout the day to put on the outfit of humbleness; like stretching and bending to loosen muscles that may be tight due to stress. Breathing in the Holy Spirit’s peace and exhaling the cares of this world.

I found a quote inside my desk calendar that I used in a previous post, but I think it bears repeating. I can’t remember the Pastor’s name, but I’m sure he won’t mind sharing some of his wisdom; “God allows for our trials to develop us. The devil brings temptations to destroy us, But God uses both to mature us”. Here is where we close our time together with a verse from a familiar hymn; “Have we trials and temptations, is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged, take it to the Lord in prayer”.

AMEN and Pray on!

Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
August 12, 2026
Psalm 25:4-5

“Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long”.

These verses are on my tabletop prayer calendar for today and happen to be a favorite memory verse for me. These verses inspired me to begin pastoral ministry by encouraging my new congregation to memorize scripture with me. One of several members took up the challenge and every time we spoke in person or on the phone she and I would recite these verses together until it became part of our visiting routine. What a joy to hear her speak these words with confidence even in times of great distress. I like to imagine her speaking with her Lord in heaven these very words as she left us several years ago.

Have you been challenged to memorize scripture? If not, how about accepting the challenge today. My recommendation is to start with John 3:16, then Psalm 23 (yes, the entire Psalm – smile). From there you might Google sites for scripture memorization or simply take time during devotional reading and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in what to memorize.

There is so much good that comes from this discipline, especially as I am aging and sense my memory slipping a bit. I also recommend that you memorize the location of the verses you are learning, this way you will be able to help someone who needs encouragement to find them in their own Bible. Life is a challenge in itself, so why not challenge life to cooperate with the Lord.

The song that comes to mind for me today is a lovely old hymn entitled; “I Love to Tell the Story”. This hymn was written by a faithful young woman who devoted her life to teaching women and young girls all about the Bible. At one point, she became deathly ill and her doctors demanded she remain in bed for one full year. Though she was very frustrated with not being able to lead Bible studies, she decided to write hymns.

Maybe you recognize this hymn and can sing with me the second verse and chorus; “I love to tell the story, ‘tis pleasant to repeat. What seems each time I tell it, more wonderfully sweet; I love to tell the story, for some have never heard the message of salvation from God’s own holy Word. I love to tell the story! Twill be my theme in glory-To tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love” (A.C. Hankey (1834-1911)

AMEN and Pray on!

Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
August 6, 2026
Psalm 103:1-2 + Deuteronomy 6:4

“Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me” (Psalm 103:1-2).

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” (Deuteronomy 6:4).

A hymn that I love, and one which I haven’t heard in quite some time is “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty” written by Joachim Neander in the mid 1600’s. It seems that his early years were reckless and wild, but then one day a gifted evangelist came to his town of Bremen Germany and Neander was converted to following Christ. Everything changed for him, he became a very successful headmaster of a school and gifted hymn writer. However, the school authorities disapproved of his fervor in sharing Christ with the students, so he was dismissed and became homeless. With no money, and no one to help, Joachim Neander died at the age of 30. Living in a cave he still found ways to write hymn after hymn to praise his wonderful Lord.

Perhaps the scriptures I am sharing with you today, had inspired him to write the hymn which ends with these words: “Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore Him! All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him! Let the amen sound from His people again; Gladly forever adore Him”.

Wherever you find yourself today and in the days ahead, I hope you will find reasons to worship the God in whose image you were created. If that seems impossible to you, call a faithful friend, don’t let negative feelings and thoughts overtake you. God loves you so much that He made a way for you to find peace with Him, His name is Jesus (see John 3:16 for starters).

AMEN and Pray on!

Worship Wednesday with Pastor Edith
July 29, 2026
Proverbs 3:5-6

Today is the last day of summer break for my grandson, who is currently napping on our couch (smile). He is entering the pre-teen years with new adventures and challenges. I am blessed that he chose to spend some of his final day of “freedom” with his Oma and I guess I have already worn him out (smile). Today’s bible verses are what I gave him as his life verses when he was a baby; “Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all of your ways acknowledge Him and he will direct your path”.

Trusting is the core of faith for the Christ follower. It is so powerful that the Apostle Paul uses it as the “shield of faith” when putting on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:11). This shield will “extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one”. In Paul’s day, the shield that the soldier carried was made with wide strips of leather that would be soaked in water, so when the arrows hit, their flames would be snuffed out immediately. I imagine that if the soldiers were in a long battle, they would have to repeatedly soak their shields so as to be battle ready. It seems to me that God’s people need to do the same by soaking in the Word of God by prayerfully studying and meditating on the scriptures often.

I was visiting a friend the other day who was frustrated with her prescriptions and how they keep getting changed as her condition changes. It is understandable that these medications need to be adjusted, but still, she worries that there will be a mix up and that would be bad. These are indeed valid concerns, so we talked about the people who care for her and her access to her doctors which seems to be going well. We talked about how God’s Word is like medication for the soul and how reading and even singing scripture can bring moments of peace when we are troubled, all this rooted in faith; a deep, abiding trust in God and all of this stemming from regularly soaking in God’s wonderful words of life. I bet you know what’s coming next, yep, a song; “Sing them over again to me, wonderful words of life; let me more of their beauty see, wonderful words of life. Words of life and beauty, teach me faith and duty, beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life. Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life” (Hymn by Philip Bliss).

Take some time today, sit, read, sing and meditate on the goodness of God. It is really good medicine for a weary or troubled soul, and you don’t even need a prescription.

AMEN and Pray on!